Human Nature
by RR-Major-Ed-Pride
Summary: One year later, the development and testing of the atomic bomb, many lives change in a single night. A frozen heart forced to cope with the past…to accept the future.
1. Prologue

Not much really to say…hmm…I don't own FullMetal Alchemist…ok yeah, here's a new story! Came up with it while watching the movie 'Waterworld' with Kevin Costner…yup…

Prologue Journal Entry # 43 

It's been months now and we've finally succeeded in creating an implosion. Personally, I think this countries government is more interested in increasing their own power then ending this damn war. But I have no choice in the matter, it was because of the U.S. that my brother and I were freed from Nazi Germany and this was the only way I could think of to repay them.

Journal Entry # 44

Today we got news that the war was over…funny…something about how the army said it made me believe that it wasn't. I wasn't able to leave even though the war was over, I had wanted to see my younger brother. There's just something about this whole project that doesn't seem right.

Journal Entry # 45

It's the big day, we'll be testing a small model of our 'creation'. Everybody is excited…I'm not. I feel that by taking part in this I'm stepping all over his dreams, I'm sorry…Alphonse. He was my good friend, all he wanted was to leave his mark on the world.

Journal Entry # 46

It's still the big day, it's only an hour away from the big test. I've got a very bad feeling about this…

They've made me the recorder, I must write down everything that happens during the test…butterflies…I've got butterflies in my stomach.

Journal Entry # 47

I'm going to start recording now,

The scientists are setting up the contraption, it's a sort of crane

They are now attaching the small model with a very small amount of, I believe it's either plutonium or some other substance…I was only working in the delivery designing section so I'm not one hundred percent sure what it is they're using.

They are raising it up now…

The count down has started…

The model starts its' decent

Falling, falling…falling

There's a bright flash and then nothing…it's…it's a success!

Journal Entry # 48

The test went well, but for the past few days I've been feeling ill. The on site doctor says it's just stress and I should take some time off to rest and relax, he's always being nice to me. He says it's because I'm so young…ha! I'm nineteen I'm hardly a child anymore. Oh yeah, I got a letter from my younger brother today, he says that he's fine and that I should hurry up and get home. It's strange…considering we really didn't have one, at least not in this country.

Journal Entry # 49

Strange things have been happening lately, the plants all seem to have grown out of control. No matter what we do they just keep coming back, some of the other scientists are saying the plants are growing this way due to the radiation that was emitted by the test. If that's how the plants were taking it…and they were outside…what's going to happen to those who were inside? That might explain the way I've been feeling lately.

Journal Entry # 50

Well…it's happened…I was having breakfast too. I just passed out, so here I am sitting in the infirmary being waited on by a very nice nurse lady. The doctor thinks it's fatigue but I've been sleeping every night and eating regularly. Everyone was stumped…why was I the only one showing such odd symptoms?

Journal Entry # 51

I've been quarantined, they only let me bring two things with me. You can guess what the first thing was, I also brought a picture…today marks the first day of living in this hole. This maybe the only way to keep my sanity considering how little human contact I can have.

Journal Entry # 52

It's been a week now…nobody has come…though every so often I'd get a trey of food, which was the highlight of my day. It's strange though…something just isn't feeling right…

Journal Entry # 53

I don't know how long it's been, my entire body just aches for some reason. It could be from the fever I've suddenly contracted…all I can think about is my brother…what would he think if I died in this hole? He'd probably kill me.

Journal Entry # 54

Cold…no wind…nothing…just…cold…I'm alone now, nobody has come. I don't dare look at the picture I thought would keep me company. Every time I do though…it mocks me. Showing me what I've lost because of this stupid, damn, project!

Journal Entry # 55

The world has forgotten about me…I'm as good as dead to the world…they don't remember who I am…where I came from…Well, if that's the case…then I don't care anymore. If the world doesn't care about me, then I don't care about the world…the world has erased my name from its' list of inhabitants…do they even remember what it is!

Journal Entry # 56

My name is Edward Elric…I used to be an alchemist…a State Alchemist at that. Ha! It doesn't exist on this side…look at me…can you hear what I'm saying? It's been a year sense I arrived on this side of the Gate, I said that now that I'm permanently here I'd leave my past behind me. Edward Elric…the FullMetal Alchemist…ha…

-To Be Continued-

If you haven't already noticed, this first little chapter/ prologue thingy was just a series of journal entries written by Edward. It generally shows how after he was put in quarantine and cut off from all human contact how he slowly but surely started to sorta…lose it. Ah, such is the affects of being alone…literally all alone…we humans are a social creature and demand interaction with each other. To cut us off from that would truly drive anyone mad, or at least in Eds case start to really dislike the world for no real reason. On one last note before I end this author note thingy, I also got some of my inspiration from the movie 'Fat Man and Little Boy', we're watching that in U.S. History as well as 'Waterworld'. Ok then, that's all for now…do leave a review! I want to know if I should continue! (Oh! On one more last note! No, every chapter will not be like this. I just did the journal entry thing for this one chapter.)


	2. Chapter One

Ok! I just wanted to tell everyone that this story line is similar to that of the movie 'Waterworld'. With alterations of course, but the whole lone wolf is forced to travel with two people deal I got from the movie. I thought it would be cool to do something like that. I guess that means I should make a disclaimer for 'Waterworld' also, all right then!

I don't own FullMetal Alchemist or Waterworld! There!

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**Chapter One: Young Man from the Wood**

It's been two years now, I can't say that I've enjoyed it. The world has changed so much sense the incident, completely covered with mutated plants and animals, one comes to learn that no matter how smart you think you are, nature is always one step ahead of you. When I found out that most of the human population was wiped out when the plants over took everything, the first thought that crossed my mind was 'Is my brother alright?'. That was, like I said, two years ago. There's no chance that Alphonse is still alive after what happened, to think I played a hand in this disaster.

But all of that is in the past; those who did survive learned to adapt to this new harsh environment. This is how we humans should live; our technology only handicapped us, made us slow and stupid.

I looked up into the canopy of branches and vines, there was only one way to tell if it was day or not and that was to climb the trees. The trees had grown to be a dangerous place, their leaves and branches hide creatures only your darkest imagination could comprehend, that and the were close to over a hundred to two hundred feet tall. That was a nasty fall if you weren't careful. If I wanted to make it to the nearest village by sun down I had to check, if it was already dark then I had to stop and rest, if it was still light out then I kept going. That's how life is now, I stop and wait for nobody.

I grabbed onto the closest vine I could find, giving it a sharp tug to make sure it was secure and could support my weight. It was a good vine so I pulled myself up and started to climb. It didn't take long for me to reach the top; I'd had lots of practice climbing vines and was fairly quick about it. Grabbing hold of a nearby branch I pulled myself into the treetops. That's when something yellow caught my eye, I froze instantly.

"Damn…" I muttered. That yellow color belonged to a very beautiful flower, I've only ever heard of these flowers from other villages. They say that it's as lethal as it is beautiful. It's called 'The Kiss of Death', which I find to be a rather odd name for a flower but it did make some sense. When someone so much as brushes against its' petals, it will stick itself to that person and inject them with poison two times stronger then arsenic. You don't feel it when it happens, the only way to tell is if you get a large welt wherever you were stung.

Lucky me, my hand was inches away from it, if it were any closer I would have been dead. I slowly pulled my hand away from it and continued climbing, when I reached to top I had to shield my eyes for a moment. It was most definitely daytime, when my eyes adjusted to the light I noticed I wasn't alone. There was another guy up here as well; he looked at least in his thirties or forties.

"Well hello there stranger!" he called. I didn't say anything at first, I wasn't sure if I could trust this guy. If there was one major thing I've learned in this world it's that you can't trust anybody.

"Beautiful day isn't it?" the man continued, "Say, did you see that 'Kiss of Death' down there? First time I've ever seen one, up close anyway. Beautiful flowers, wish they weren't so poisonous though."

"What do you want?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing really, I just came up here to see what time it was. But then I was distracted by the beauty of the sun, we humans weren't built for the darkness of the underbrush." The man answered, he turned to face me and smiled.

"Whatever…" I huffed, I started to make my way back down when suddenly the man appeared just above me. He'd moved so swiftly and silently I didn't even hear him, I nearly fell but he caught my hand.

"Young people are so careless," he smiled, "That's the advantage of growing older, you gain experience." The man the let go and I fell. Crashing through the branches I tried to grab hold of something, anything, that would slow my fall. I couldn't get a good grip on anything, that is, until I managed to wrap my hand around a vine. It went taunt when my full weight caught it. I looked up and saw the man climbing down, he probably thinks that the fall killed me and he'd be able to steal what I had. I smirked to myself and swung back and forth so I could jump down.

You see, I wasn't like most people, I'd learned that as well. A person may get wiser with age, but there's just one thing older people don't have that the younger do, and that's evolution. They're the old models, as some would put it, a new generation has its quirks…me, I just happen to have one of the more…noticeable quirks.

When the man reached the forest floor he looked around, I was hiding in the bushes. It was amusing watching the man look around for my remains, considering he wasn't going to find any. I was just about to make my move when somebody else came out of the shadows.

This new person was dressed in what looked like a black Chinese top and black pants. They didn't smell right, the air seemed to still for the situation. I waited, and watched. The man looked at them for a moment then said,

"Nice…day were having, isn't it?"

"Indeed…but not for you." The other person replied. The man backed up slightly and asked,

"Who are you?"

"I am a member of New Genesis, and you…you are a Useless. Do you know what that means?" the person said.

"New…Genesis? You mean that group that goes around killing all those they say are inferior!"

"Yes, that is us…you are a Useless, therefore, you must die." It happened so quickly that I barely had time to see it actually happen. The person from this group called New Genesis just flicked their wrist and the man dropped to the ground. He had what looked like a throwing star embedded in his forehead.

I figured this was as good a time as any to get moving, I sure as hell didn't want anything to do with these people. Stealthily, I slipped away and continued walking. Some time pasted and I came to going over the things I'd need from the next village, like, more paper, a new pen, maybe a book or two, I needed to get some more rope. There were a lot of things I wanted to get, most of which I really didn't need and it all would just slow me down. Personally, I wasn't really sure why I was traveling around so much lately. I don't like being around people; I can't stand how incompetent the human race is.

I finally came to a village, it wasn't much, it was very small and seemed to have more people then it could hold. Most of the resident housing was up in the treetops, not the best place to build a home. On the ground were mostly small tables with things to buy or trade, economy didn't have much of a hold on things as it used too. Now it was, if you have something good to trade then you trade it, or if you just so happen to have some form of currency, didn't matter which, then you used that.

People started to take notice to my presence and gave me questioning looks as if they'd never seen some one like me before. I didn't take much notice to them, I didn't really care. Finally someone stepped in front of me and asked,

"You know who I am?"

"No," I answered, "But I know what you do."

"Good, then you know not to cause any trouble. I want you out of here by sundown." The man said.

"Sure…whatever…" I walked passed the man and made my way over to the nearest table. This place really didn't have much, just some rusty old utensils and whatnots. The only thing they had by way of paper and writing tools were a few pages of sketch paper and a red colored pencil. I figured it would have to do considering I was all out of paper and my pen was dead. There wasn't anybody standing around so I stood and waited for a moment. The table was set up just in front of what looked like a small cabin, just by looking at it, this cabin couldn't hold more then three or four people.

I shifted the messenger bag around my shoulder slightly so I could rummage through the contents to see what I could trade for the paper and pencil. All I really had was a used note pad, a dead pen, a pocket watch and knife I found, some old books, a small stuffed toy dog and a photograph. The photo was faded slightly and was getting warn, I really should find a frame for it. As much as I knew the impossibility that my younger brother was alive, I still liked having the picture around and it would be a shame if I let it get any more tattered.

Taking out the books, I figured I really didn't need them anymore considering I've read them all at least twice. I put the not pad back into my bag though, it had all my notes and journal entries, I couldn't possibly let that fall into someone else's hands. I then twirled the dead pen around in my fingers for a moment then set it down on top of the books, nobody else knew it was dead. The pocketknife was a useful tool so I stuck that back in my bag, along with the toy dog, the pocket watch though I stuffed in my pocket. As much as I was detached from that place, a small memory couldn't hurt.

Just as I was closing off my bag somebody came out of the small cabin and walked over saying,

"Those books better be in good condition and that pen had better work."

"The books are fine, though one of them has a torn page, that was my fault, and the pen is…more or less fine." I said, it really wasn't such a good thing to lie, but I figured if I didn't get rid of the pen I'd have to just toss it. If I were to just toss it that would make the plants angry, considering they seem to have a mind of their own and don't like it when people just drop stuff and leave it.

"You better not be lying about the pen," a young lady said resting her crossed arms on the table. I looked up at her to retort but stopped. "What are you liking at? Listen, I already know you're lying about the pen. Nobody just gives up a working pen in trade unless there's something wrong with it."

I took out the photo again and looked at it quickly then back at the young lady behind the table. She had long light brown hair pulled back in a high ponytail and tanish brown blue eyes. If it weren't for those small details she was almost a spitting image of Winry. Same attitude to boot.

"Ok, so the pen is dead. But the books are still good." I grumbled, she straightened herself out and examined the books. While she was doing this she asked,

"You're new around here aren't you? What's your name?"

"What does it matter?"

"Stubborn…alright fine, what do you want for these books?" she said setting the books down.

"The paper and pencil…"

"…" She just glared at me for a second then said, "You've been out in the woods too long haven't you?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean!" I snapped.

"It means, you're gonna have to come up with something else if you want to trade. I'll give you the pencil for these books but that's it." She said.

"You know what…whatever…I'll take the damn pencil." I grabbed the pencil and turned around.

"Hold on," the lady then said.

"What?" I hissed.

"You look familiar…what did you do before all of this?" she asked.

"You mean before the plants decided to fend for themselves and take over the planet?"

"Yeah."

"I guess you could say I was an engineer."

"What's your name?" she then asked.

"I thought I said what does it matter?"

"Is it really that hard to give your name! Listen, you give me your name and I'll toss in the paper how's that?"

"Heh, your loss." She tossed me the sketchpad and I caught it, I quickly stuffed it in my bag and turned to leave.

"Hey! What about your name?" she shouted.

"It doesn't matter! I'm leaving town anyway so you're just going to forget it!" I shouted back. As soon as I was far enough away from that shop I couldn't help but be both amused and irritated. I left that place a long time ago, it doesn't matter any more.

"I didn't even ask her what her name was…Dammit." Not that it really mattered, it would have just proven what I already know is true, and that's the fact that no matter what, I can't go back. Forward is the only choice I have and I'm sticking with it.

I was making my way towards the edge of the small village when some people stopped me. They all seemed kind of old, one of them, an old man, took a step forward and said,

"You seem like a strong young man, what do you intend to do now with all your supplies?"

"I'm assuming that was a compliment," I said, "as for what I plan on doing is none of your business."

"Well, I guess your business is your business, but would you consider taking our daughter along with you?" the old man asked. I raised an eyebrow at this; they weren't serious were they?

"Why would I do that?" I asked trying to get past them; they only managed to get in my way yet again because I didn't feel like hurting an old person, though it was growing more tempting every minute.

"Because, our people are dying and we…"

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! I don't think so…I got what I came here for and I'm leaving. It's a very nice offer but no…" I interrupted raising my hands up defensively.

"But…"

"No, if I wanted that, I would have said so…" I managed to squeeze my way out of the small crowd and hastily made my way towards the edge of the village. I hadn't known that the daughter I'd just turned down happened to belong to one of the villages' 'elders'. He must have taken offence of my decline so he had some men stop me again. They surrounded me, one of them, a man about thirty or forty, said,

"You can leave when you've fulfilled the elders request."

"Excuse me? I'm honored by the request but I'm busy…" I shoved my way past him. He then rushed forward and grabbed my wrist, twisting it behind my back and shoving me towards the ground. I caught myself and swung around kicking him in the temple. The rest of the men then attacked, it was a rather short fight considering they caught me slightly off guard and managed to overwhelm me. They managed to pin me down to the ground, I had to get out of this crazy village, there was only one way out of this. I managed to take a deep breath to calm my nerves, and then I inhaled quickly. By doing this I was able to slide myself out of three of the three guys restraints.

"What the? Where'd he…" one of the men said, he looked around quickly then spotted me standing a few feet away, I was glaring at him, the look on the mans face though spoke more words then I wanted to hear, he saw.

"He's one of them! One of those freaks who changed like the plants and animals!"

That's right, thanks to the damn radiation my whole genetic structure was mutated. I am able to adapt to just about any environment,

"Heh, well freak is kind of a nasty name isn't it?" I said in a sardonic manner. The reaction from the surrounding crowd that was gathering was certainly a major surprise though; everyone seemed to be giving me very venomous glares. Then suddenly someone shouted,

"Kill him!" and that set it off, never had I seen such an uproar. I couldn't attack the towns' people, well I could but I wasn't going to hurt people needlessly. They all stormed at me and managed to drag me down yet again. I felt like a bone being tossed into a pack of ravenous dogs, somebody had managed to slip a rope around my neck and was pulling back cutting off my breathing.

Without realizing I was fighting back, as best I could with the decreasing oxygen to the brain. Finally somebody pushed their way through the crowed and started forcing them back, away from me. One of the older men looked at the man, who'd come to my rescue and demanded,

"What are you doing!"

"I'm paid to keep the peace aren't I? This doesn't look like peace to me, I'm just doing my job." It was the man from before.

"He should die, he might be one of the New Genesis." One person said.

"Yeah, and he turned down my daughter!" the 'elder' man added. I just scoffed and said,

"Don't get me wrong pops, I'm just not lookin' at the moment!"

"You'd do best if you didn't speak kid." The man said.

"Kid...ha…kid…right." I grumbled.

"He needs to die!"

"That maybe, but not here or this way. Tomorrow at noon, he'll be taken to the sand pit." The man said.

"What?" the man the took out some rope and started tying my hands behind my back, "You've got to be kidding, I've got to die because I turned some old guys daughter down! Geez, I'm losing faith in the human race faster and faster."

"Sorry kid…" the man replied, he then led me away towards what looked like a one story tall tower with a cage at the top. The cage was attached to a pulley system and was hanging over a rather large pit of quick sand. He opened the cage and shoved me inside; he then shut the door. After locking it he stuck his hands inside the cage and untied my hands.

I slumped down grumbled; though it was fortunate that nobody took any of my stuff. Normally I would have been robbed under the circumstances, but that didn't happen. To think, I could be out there, alone, not have to deal with the stupidity of the world, just my own. I boardly banged the back of my head off the metal bars and took out the pencil and paper. This was one of those moments were the only person you could possibly talk to is yourself.

--

Journal Entry # 2543

Well, I've been tossed in a cage and sentenced to death for turning down a girl. I really can't see what the big deal is anyway; it's not like I'm going to be the only person coming through this village. They also discovered my little secret, though I did play a hand in its discovery, not the brightest move in the world. This is the first and only time I've ever going to come to this village, the people here are crazy. First there's this lady that runs one of the small little shops here that looks just like Winry, I can't say that I'm happy about it though. And then there's that crazy old 'elder' man who tried to hand off his daughter to me…heh…heheh…yeah. Then finally there's this lawman, who saves me from a near rioting mob then agrees with them that I should die. I just want to get out of this place and back on my own again…

--

"What are you writing?" someone suddenly said, I nearly jumped out of my skin by this sudden interruption. Turning in the direction of the voice I noticed it was the lady from the shop.

"Oh, it's you…what do you want?" I said coldly, I was in less then a good mood.

"You still have to pay me for that paper you're writing on." She said.

"You said I could have it."

"Yes, if you gave me your name, you didn't do that. So I'm here to get what I asked for."

"What is it with you people? Persistent aren't we!" I hissed.

"Well?"

"Tell me yours first…"

"How do I know you're not going to pull another stunt like last time?" she asked.

"It's not like I can just get up and run away." I said, I couldn't tell if she had said that just go get on my nerves or she really wanted to know.

"Fine, my name is Carmon, I'm from the U.S." she said.

"Figures…"

"What?"

"Oh nothing…"

"I'm waiting…"

"Edward, from Munich, Germany."

"You're German? Wow, you don't even have an accent!"

"That's because I just live in Germany! I wasn't born German, besides all that doesn't matter now does it? Considering both countries no longer exist, at least not in terms of being an actual country anymore."

"Right…"

I glared at her for a moment the scooted away, why wouldn't she leave now? I told her my name, and were I came from which was not apart of the deal, so why didn't she go away?

"What do you want!" I snapped.

"Is it true, what I've been hearing. That you're one of those people that evolved with the plants and animals?" she asked.

"I guess so…now go away."

"You don't like people do you."

"What ever gave you that idea?"

"Fine…" she then huffed getting up from her spot, "One last thing, is it true that all of you are led by a giant monster?"

"Giant monster? Heh, and I thought this place couldn't get any crazier." I muttered, she turned and left in a huff. I couldn't help but wonder though, what was this monster she was talking about?

-To Be Continued-

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Neyahahahaha! I just loved that scene in 'Waterworld' where the village elders ask the loner dude (Costner) if he'd make their daughter or whoever she was pregnant and he said no. They were all like, 'nobody stays out on the water that long and turns down a woman'. Ha! I just thought it'd be funny to put Ed in that situation and see what happens!

Ed: You will pay for this!

Me: I lobve you too Ed!


	3. Chapter Two

Yey! People like this one too! Alrighty then, thank you to those who reviewed already!

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**Chapter Two: New Genesis**

The night was cold; I couldn't really sleep so I entertained myself boardly. I ran my hand back and forth across the cold, rusty bars of the cage that held me. Pulling my hand away and looked at it, my hand had turned the rusty orange-brown color of the bars. The color sort of spread through my hand like glass breaking, when it was done I just rubbed my hands together until the color vanished.

Letting my head flop back against the cage wall, I gazed dazedly out into the dark, dense forest. Something would occasionally rustle the bushes but would disappear seconds later. Now that I thought about it, it wasn't so bad sitting in this cage. I was alone, the sound of nature and the world was an intoxicatingly soothing. It wasn't long before I drifted off to sleep, soon I was dreaming. They were not very peaceful dreams either, nightmares from two years ago.

Locked in the dark for so long, completely cut off from everything. I hated these nightmares, they were so real. Especially that time period where I was completely over taken by fever and my skin would bleed. Then images of my younger brother would pop up; he'd be waving at ma, saying something that I couldn't hear.

It seemed like I'd just started dreaming when I was jolted awake by somebody rattling the cage bars. Opening my eyes I realized it was morning already, I'd grown to really dislike it when this kind of thing happened.

"Good, you're awake. We don't want you to sleep through this," one of the men said, "it wouldn't be proper."

"Proper my ass…" I grumbled, "What isn't proper is waking a person so rudely." I staggered to my feet irritably and glanced around. A rather sizable crowd had gathered much to my surprise. How did so many people gather without my noticing? I didn't really care, but it was still slightly baffling.

The village elders had gathered as well, the one from the other day was standing with a young girl. I gave him an irritatedly shocked frown, if that was who he'd been talking about the other day; she couldn't be more then sixteen or seventeen years old. I rolled my eyes and thought these guys must have been desperate.

"Young man, do you know why you are here?" lawman asked, he'd just popped up out of nowhere and startled me. It must really be early for me to be this out of whack.

"Yeah," he said, "But it's for a stupid reason. The only thing criminal about this is the fact, that old man over there singled me out, backed me in a corner and tried to force his daughter on me." I then turned and glared at the old man, "What's more important old man? Your daughter or preserving your people? If I remember correctly isn't blood thicker then water?"

"Silence, that is enough out of you." The old man snapped, "Proceed with the sentence." He then said to the lawman. He nodded and turned towards me, putting his hand on a crank.

"Sorry kid…" he said, then started turning the crank and the cage started to descend. I took a step back and looked around franticly, normally I could probably just slip through the bars. It's just peachy that the way the cage was built, that little trick wouldn't work. The cage was a few inches away from the surface of the quick sand when suddenly someone shouted.

"There's movement in the forest! It's New Genesis!"

Sure enough, a loud bang echoed through the air and the man that had shouted fell backward dead with a bullet in his heart. The cage jerked to a stop as the lawman stopped to try and calm the now panicking people.

"Hey, let me out!" I shouted, the lawman turned and looked at me. He had a rather strained look on his face; he then shook his head in a defeated manner and went to help the villagers. I was left ther hanging in the cage, a sitting duck in an attack that I wanted nothing to do with.

People were screaming as a flood of oddly dressed people attacked the village, they seemed to single out different people and kill them. Others, they'd carry off into the woods. I started to rattle at the bars, they were pretty strong. There was another loud bang, this one slightly louder then the last, and the next thing I know the cage is falling fast. It landed in the quick sand and started sinking, with me still inside it. I wrapped my arms around the part of the cage that wasn't sunk and pulled the small pocket knife out of my pocket, I'd put it there just incase late last night. Working at the lock on the cage, I tried to pry it loose, it was stubborn.

It seemed like only seconds before the cage was nearly submerged in the sand. I tried to keep my arms and head above it for as long as I could, but it was no good. I still hadn't picked the lock and I was running out of time, then I lost my grip on the bars. Save for my arms I was completely under the sand now, I was going to die this way. This really sucked; I didn't want to die, at least not this way. Just as I was losing both consciousness and any hope of survival somebody pulled my head out of the sand. The light was blinding for a moment before my eyes adjusted to the sudden change; I glanced around looking for the person who helped me.

"You sure are a magnet for trouble." Carmen said, she had me by the collar. She then leaned in close and said, "If I get you out of here, you have to take me and one other person out of here."

"W...what?"

"You are going to take me and one other person with you, in exchange for me helping you out of this cage. Now you've only got a few second left before this cage is completely sunk, what's your choice?" she said.

"F…fine, alright." I sputtered; the sand had really started to pull at my legs trying to drag me deeper into it. Carmon then took something out of her pocket and started to work at the lock, it only took her a second or two to get the lock undone. She then swung the door open and pulled me out.

"Now come on, we have to get Ally." Carmon said jumping down from the small tower. I stumbled after her; I didn't have the time or the chance to clean myself off so I was pretty bogged down by sand. I'd temporarily lost her, that is until she came out of a nearby cabin with a small girl, about nine or ten years old, in her arms. She spotted me and rushed over.

"Well, were do we go now?" she asked. I looked around quickly, there were still people being killed and dragged off everywhere. This wasn't going to be hard, just…interesting. I then motioned for her to follow me as I started across the village; I was making my way for the exit I'd planed on using the day before. It was closest and didn't seem to have as much activity.

"Common, stay close…" I hissed. I had been to busy trying to get her to move faster that I didn't notice one of the strangers that had attacked the village was standing right behind me. I walked straight into them knocking both of us over, they jumped up quickly and said,

"You insolent dog, how dare you…" the stranger stopped, I jumped up and glared at them. Then something made me shiver,

"Wait…I've seen you…" I muttered. It was the guy from the forest, the one that killed the man who tried to kill me.

"You're on of them aren't you?" the guy asked. I answered this by swinging my bag around and whacking him in the face. He staggered back and I took this chance to make a break for it. Carmon, the little girl, and I made it to the woods and managed to hide there till the fighting stopped. When it did, we noticed that the strangers were still there, Carmon just shook her head.

"New Genesis…this is the second time they've attacked us. It's not safe here anymore…"

"Carmon? Can we go home now?" the little girl asked.

"I'm sorry Ally, we can't go back there, it's not safe." She replied. I huffed and started walking away from the village, running my hands over my face trying to get the sticky sand off. My skin was starting to turn the color of the sand so I was having a hard time telling what was sand and what wasn't. Carmon jumped up and started after me, little Ally close behind.

"Where do you think you're going?" she demanded.

"Anywhere but here," I grumbled, "I need to get this stuff off, it's irritating…" I added, more as a note to myself then anyone else. Carmon then grabbed my arm and stopped me.

"We're coming with you." She said.

"Heh, no…" I said flatly, pulling my arm out of her grip and continued walking.

"You lying, no good…aarg! You promised!" she shouted, I rounded quickly and snapped,

"Could you keep it down, more of those New Genesis people could be about."

"We're coming with you, that was the deal if I helped you." Carmon said.

"No…I want to be left alone."

"Too bad, you agreed so now you're stuck with us." Carmon snapped crossing her arms. I just waved my hand absentmindedly and continued walking, they followed close behind. An hour or so passed and Carmon finally spoke up,

"If you're still having trouble getting that sand off, there are hot springs not too far from here."

"And how do you know that?" I asked.

"I only spent all my life in that village, I know about just about every luxury spot within two miles of the village." She smirked, "Besides, you could use a bath."

I glared at her then turned around and trudged off into the woods. This went against my better judgement and way beyond my normal living standard. I had only agreed so I could get out of there. Little Alley came running up to me and pulled on my sleeve,

"Where are you going to take us?" she asked.

"I'm not taking you guys anywhere…" I grumbled.

"Why not? I thought we were going to be staying with you."

"Because, you two are going to go off on your own and leave me alone." I stopped for a moment and looked down at Alley, there was something about her that seemed familiar. Shaking my head I then added, "I'm not a people person…"

"What! Why not?" Alley asked. My eye twitched slightly, I'd almost forgotten just how much little kids loved to ask questions.

"That's none of your business kid." I turned and stormed over to a tree and started climbing, this was the only way I could think of to get away from them. I was about half way up when something nailed me in the back of the head. Nearly losing my grip I looked around madly for the source of the attack, then looking down I saw Carmon glaring up at me tossing a few stones around in her hand.

"Alley can't climb trees," she said loudly, "get down here, we're going to the hot springs."

"Crazy woman," I grumbled rubbing the back of my head, that had rather hurt, "What makes you think I care where you're going! I got you out of that village didn't I, and you got me out of the cage, that's fair enough." After that was said, I continued climbing. When I reached the top, I made sure to double check that I was alone, then gazed around at the surroundings.

It was night and the sky was clear and the stars were shining brightly. Turning my attention to the landscape I looked around for some sort of landmark, a very large tree sounded nice. A small cloud of white steam could be seen about a hundred meters away inching above the treetops. I tilted my head thoughtfully, a bath did sound nice, I hadn't gotten all the sand off and it was making my head itchy. If those two happen to drop by there anyway, it didn't really matter, I figured.

Lifting myself up out of the tree branches, I was able to walk along the top of the trees. It was considerably convenient that the tree branches were so thick and crowded that they made a sort of makeshift floor, or ceiling depending on the perspective. It also helped having a rather cat like sense of balance. It wasn't long before I reached the source of the steam, it was definitely hot sprints, and there were at least three of them.

Climbing down from the treetops, I jumped down from the lowest branch, which were at least five or six feet from the ground. I silently pondered how I was going to get my clothes clean, just toss them into one of the springs while I used the other one? I just shrugged and muttered about how I was wasting time, it had become a reoccurring habit of mine to sometimes talk to myself. I set my bag down on one of the giant stones next to the nearest spring, and then I took my tank top off. I looked it over for a moment and thought I should probably get another one, or at least one that wasn't so worn and it was getting kinda small. Tossing it in the spring I then turned my attention to stretching my arms about, they were stiff and sore. The hot water would help relax my sore muscles.

To Be Continued-

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(Insanely evil laugh) Neyahahahahahahahahaha! No Ed fan service for you! Whahahahahahaha! –Cough, cough, cough- heh…sorry…it's late and tomorrows my birthday and I'm getting manga! FullMetal manga! (Squee!) And I'm all happy and can't sleep, so that means…I just finished this chapter! Yey!

(Sigh) I just want to note…I know, I'm seriously neglecting 'Gates' and 'Harry Potter and the Quadwizard Tournament' and 'The Dawn of Haymaker' T.T. I've got the next chapter for 'Millennium Awakening' all written up and half way typed. Neya, I've got like three weeks of school left till summer vacation (O.o oh hey! Only three weeks! –Only just catching on- Kewl!) Now I'm rambling, so I'll just go to sleep now…please review! Reviewers get hugs! (I've been givin' hugs a lot of hugs lately…oh well! Hugs are a good thing!)


	4. Chapter Three

All righty then! A new chapter for this story! I had a three-day weekend and I didn't even know it till it was practically half over so I had lots of time too type up chapters! But of course there is that little factor where I ether forget to or decide I'm gonna be lazy and put it off. That last one usually ends up not so good cause then I get this back up thing where I'm focusing on just one story and neglecting all the others and blah dee blah blah that kinda thing…ok…well here's the next chapter…hee hee hee hell hath no fury like a womans' scorn…(evil laugh with lighting and scary music).

Oh, one last thing…I realized that I spelled the little girls name two different ways, 'Ally' and 'Alley' well…heh…it's 'Ally', it was late and I wasn't focused (heh, when am I ever!). Say, can anyone guess why I gave the little girl the name 'Ally'? What about Carmon? Why did I name alter!Winry 'Carmon'? (Ok, I ask that cause I don't know why I called her Carmon, so perhaps there's a reason I'm just not seeing.)

* * *

**Chapter Three: The Opposite Gender is a Confusing Species**

The water was hot and peaceful, if it weren't for the fact that I was also washing my clothes I probably would have fallen asleep and drown. When I was satisfied with how clean my clothes were, I got out and set them on a nearby rock. To hang ones' clothes in the trees, ment risking never seeing them again. I didn't like having to get out of the water for such a trivial chore as drying clothes, but I was happy to return to it.

With everything that has happened recently, I was glad to get away, my entire body was aching and, even though I'm not the biggest believer, god knows I needed a good soak. I mulled around in the hot water before sitting down on the floor of the spring; the water came up to my shoulders, which wasn't too bad. I reached a sore arm up and pulled out the band that was holding my hair back in a high ponytail. I hadn't realized just how long I let my hair get; it had been a while from the last time I checked. It was about down to the middle of my back, at the longest point anyway, I quickly ran my fingers through it to get all the itches and kinks out.

I then dunked my head under the water; the warm rush was refreshing. I was glad I was able to hold my breath for such long periods of time, I could thank my odd little change for that. Bringing my head above the water again and wiping the water out of my eyes I gazed around through the steam. My mind had wondered back to that lady, Carmon, and the little girl that was with her. It bothered me slightly that she had her face, and yet, she wasn't her. That little girl looked oddly familiar too, not that it mattered now anyway, I was rid of them and on my own again…just the way I like it.

"Feh…" I glanced over at my clothes, they should be dry by now, at least I hoped so. I made my way over to the edge of the spring and looked around; it was a habit to check to make sure nobody was around, though it was pointless considering I was in the middle of nowhere. I took one step out of the water when the snap of a twig caught my attention, I turned my head slightly to try and hear it again.

'Snap'

Narrowing my eyes I waited for who or whatever was making that noise to show itself, nothing. It was quite vexing, if it was an enemy then they'd have me at a disadvantage, I really didn't like being in that situation. Finally the brush just in front of me, a good three or four feet, rustled and somebody stepped out.

"You just wait there Ally, I'll make sure it's…" they stopped. I was starting to think, if there were gods, they sure had a sick, twisted, horrible sense of humor, "safe…"

It was Carmon, clearly she must have made her way here thinking I had just brushed off her suggestion. She was just starring blankly; it was giving me the creeps.

"What?" I hissed, she quickly turned a bright red and shook her head, the next thing I know a tree branch hit me square in the face knocking me back in the water.

"What are you doing here?" Carmon demanded. My only response was to stay submerged in the water just enough so my nose was above it, she still looked flustered. I didn't see why she was so upset, she was the one who suggested I come here, and also she shouldn't be sneaking around like that.

"Well?"  
"What does it look like I'm doing!" I snapped, I sensed it was safe enough to have my head above water, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Ally said she wanted to take a bath and I knew these where the only hot springs in the area." She replied crossing her arms and turning around, "But if you're here then I think she can wait."

"Don't bother, I was leaving anyway…" I started for the edge again, slowly and with great caution.

"Don't! Move!" she hissed.

"Well do you expect me to sit in here all night?"

"Just wait a moment," Carmon walked back into the brush for a moment, when she came back. She had a very serious look on her face; I remember that face and it left a rather sinking sick feeling in my stomach.

"I'll leave as soon as you hand me my clothes, I'm sure it would be more polite." I said, all she did was cross her arms and glare down at me, I wasn't really sure what to do. I sure as hell wasn't getting out with her watching, I may be older and wiser, in some aspects, but that still didn't mean I didn't like my privacy.

"What will it take for you to let us travel with you?" she finally asked. Why didn't I see that coming, she may have her face and similar expressions but this persistence was all Carmons'. I too crossed my arms and replied,

"Nothing, because you're not traveling with me."

"I'm a good shot when it comes to hunting and I can cook."

"So am I and I can cook too, why do you want to travel with me anyway?"

"…" Carmon glared as if the question I asked was either insulting or personal, I couldn't see how it could be personal.

"Bodyguard maybe? From those New Genesis freaks? Listen, I live on my own and I don't take jobs for any reason." I glared back, "Now, could you hand me my clothes so I can leave, besides, you're the one that said Ally wanted to take a bath and if I was here she wouldn't be able too."

"I don't know why, there was just something about you, that and I've seen what you can do. You're just like them, New Genesis, and yet you aren't on their side, you've adapted to the environment. Do you know how hard that is? For someone like me, it would take more then half my lifetime to even learn half the things you do." Carmon explained. I scowled and replied,

"And do you know what I had to go through to be this great rebel environmentally adapted freak? No, I didn't think so. Now unless you have a damn good reason for following me…leave. Me. Alone."

"Isn't there anything I can do that will convince you to let Ally and I tag along?" she asked sitting down near the edge of the spring, rolling up her pant legs and let them soak in the water. Once again that rather sinking feeling in my stomach returned, I had a sneaking suspicion of what she was getting at and it was awkward.

"Like what?"

"Whatever you want…" she replied, she hadn't made eye contact which showed that whatever she was planing was something she really didn't want to do but had to if she wanted to help someone she cared for. It was odd, after all these years I still haven't gotten used to all these senses, I've become terribly good at judging character and reading a persons face. Hell, a person could have a blank look on their face and I'd be able to tell if that person was someone I could trust or not, it was both a useful trait but one that got in the way at times.

This time for example, I could already tell what she was thinking and why she was doing this and it was annoying, flattering…but annoying. Carmon had slid into the water; I had been deep in thought so it took me a few extra seconds to notice.

"What are you doing?" I asked, if she really wanted to travel with me then she should know I hate dealing with wet clothes, it ment they had to dry and I didn't have anything to spare. The thought ran through my mind briefly before she suddenly drew closer and placed one arm around my neck.

"Always by yourself, it must be lonely." She said slowly. Something strange came over me, a memory that wasn't, I reacted by reaching out and lightly tracing the side of her face. Any normal person would not have noticed, but I did, Carmon had flinched slightly at my touch and that brought me back to my senses. I let my hand slip back into the water, she gave me a questioning look as I backed away and feudally reached for my clothes, which were sadly a few feet to far away.

I did this to try and get around what she was implying; it would seem THAT is all anyone in this region ever thinks about. They just assume that because a person lives out on their own, all alone, means that once they find themselves in 'civilization' all they can think about is…well it's not like I haven't thought about it, I just have bigger and better things to be wasting my time on. Finally getting sick of having this topic brought up so often I said,

"You've got nothing I need…leave me alone." Just about to climb out, something cold and sharp was pressed into my neck, "My…I seem to be quite popular…" I added in a surprisingly playful manner. I can easily blame some of those traits I've contracted, but I can reluctantly blame a side of me that I've grown to do my best to seal away.

"You're going to take us with you, got it?" Carmon hissed.

"How long do you plan on keeping me like this?" I replied simply.

"As long as it takes…"

Seeing no way out of this and that if I made any sudden movements I'd find myself dying in the most…embarrassing…manner, I did the first thing that came to mind. I took a quick step back, this caught Carmon off guard, she accidentally lost her grip on the blade she had and that gave me the chance to retaliate by kicking her feet out from under her, she slipped and went under. I jumped out of the water and quickly grabbing my, now dry, pants and put them on before Carmon regained her footing, when she did she looked very angry and was about to climb out after me.

"Wait…you…"

"Leave me alone…" I turned, picking up the rest of my stuff, and was about to leave when little Ally suddenly dashed out of her hiding spot and stopped in front of me, she looked up at me and said,

"Why are you being a meany?"

Scowling I stormed past her, she better not have been watching, she chased after me and tugged on my bag asking,

"Why won't you let us travel with you?"

"Go away."

"Why do you want to be left alone?"  
"So I don't have to listen to little girls asking a bunch of annoying questions." I hissed.

"Have you killed anyone before?"

I stopped and glared at her, then glancing up and around I noticed Carmon hadn't followed, what a predicament,

"Yes…now, can I ask you a question?"

"I guess…"

"Why are you wondering off with a stranger?"

"Huh?"

"Me, I'm a stranger, I don't know you and you don't know me. For all you know, I could kill you on the spot and not lose a second of sleep." That would do it, scare her away, then I could be alone again. Ally looked back towards the hot springs, then up at me, then back again, she seemed to be thinking something. She then looked up at me and said,

"Because," she walked up to me and grabbed my hand, "you're a good person and wouldn't do that…"

The look she was giving me was giving me the creeps, and when she let go of my hand it left a strange tingly feeling behind. Huffing, I picked Ally up and brought her back to the springs, much to her own amusement, Ally asked,

"Why do you have long hair? It makes you look like a girl."

"I like it that way, and no it doesn't." I replied, the minute I returned her then I was gone…that's right.

"All right then," she sighed, "Compared to all the men in our village, you're kind of short…why is that?"

"You know what…shut up kid…" I hissed, it was about time, I walked around the all too familiar stone that marked where the springs where and stopped. Ally started bouncing up and down laughing,

"Carmon! Look! I got him to come back!"

I set Ally down and quickly turned around, Carmon was sitting in one of the other springs washing her clothes, she had looked up and glared,

"Well I hope you're happy." She glared.

"What? About coming back? No, I'm not…but she followed me." I replied flatly, still facing the other way.

"No idiot, I mean about my clothes, they're soaking wet now."

"How's that my fault!" I snapped turning around, I got a rather large rock to the face for that and I turned around again, "Damn that hurt, I think I liked you better with the knife…"

"What was that?"

"Shrew…"

"Why you!" Carmon stood up and chucked her soaking wet shirt at my head, I dodged it and it landed on a low tree branch.

"Hey! Hey! What are you doing standing up?"

"Freak! I wouldn't even think of bathing in the open naked, you on the other hand seem to have no sense of dignity…"

"…"

"What? No witty comeback?"

"Do I need one? I think I'll get my point across by not bothering to get the shirt you threw at me, that tree there is eating it." I shrugged turning and starting to walk away.

"Huh!" Sure enough, the tree I just walked by had swallowed the shirt hole, "Wait!"

"What? You can't expect me to get it back now…I'd like to keep what few limbs I have left." I glared, Carmon climbed out of the hot spring, she had been smart enough to have been wairing a towel.

"I didn't bring anything else…"

"Not my problem…"

"Don't you have one?"

"What?"

"In that bag of yours, don't you have…"

"No…" I continued to walk, the more I listened to this lady, the more I was starting to reconsider my choice in company. Ally was following close behind and said,

"Hey mister, what about that one?"

I stopped and looked where she was pointing, she was referring to my shirt and I shook my head replying,

"That's my shirt…" then I noticed the look Ally was giving me, it was really creepy, I know I've seen that look before, "Damn…whatever! If you insist on following me that's your problem, but don't think I'll be protecting you, feeding you, or any of that crap got it."

The two just looked up shocked, I tossed Carmon my shirt then started walking again, I knew right then that I'd regret this later but when that time came then I'd be ready.

-To Be Continued-

* * *

Whoa! Major brain malfunction! (Funny buzzing/zappy noises) X.X

Well, anyway, the next chapter will have more New Genesis action! Booyaka! And a few cooler wittle special features I've given Ed, mwa, mwaha, mwhahahaha!

Well anywhozles…IT'S SUMMER VACATION! WHOOOOOHOOOOO! That means I'll have more time for updates and stuff…but then…my mom also got me sighed up for a cool flash animation class in the MTUSYP (Michigan Tech Summer Youth Program), I was in it not last summer but the summer before in a drawing class, it's fun! Oh, and I may be applying for a job…hmm…well anywhozles, updates will be more often (Hopefully), so long as I can get to the library. Review! It's fun for all ages!


	5. Chapter Four

Alas, the two are bonding…heh…heheh…but yeah, I promised New Genesis action in this chapter. Well, all I can tell ya now is that yes, New Genesis makes yet another appearance AND we get ta see a rather odd side of our dear Edu-kun (as in 'Whoa…he'd do that!'). Yet another part of 'Waterworld' I thought was funny, only…it involved a plane…and the hero dude getting knocked into the water from like fifteen to twenty feet in the air. Sadly, I don't have a plane T.T.

Enjoy!

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**Chapter Four: For Every Action…**

These past three days have been less then eventful, I really wasn't heading anywhere and yet those two insisted on following me. I shifted the strap of my bag, it had started rubbing a sore spot between my shoulder and neck, finally getting annoyed by the growing redness and irritation I stopped and set the bag down.

"Why are you stopping?" Carmon asked. I merely turned and glared at her, she returned the glare with on of her own but I didn't answer, "Well?"

"If you're still insisting on traveling with me, get used to my habits. I like to stop every so often, is that a problem?" I hissed. She crossed her arms; Ally looked up at Carmon then over at me before asking,

"When can we get something to eat?"

I didn't answer that, I just placed my hands on my hips and leaned back, everything was sore again. Perhaps it was stress; I went over my options of what to do next while I stretched, it wasn't long before something caught my attention. It was faint but I picked it up easily, turning my head slightly I listened. I listened to the faint breeze rustling the leaves, the sounds of the animals hiding in the vegetation, the sound of the trees twisting and fighting for room to grow…footsteps. I turned my head a little more until I had both Carmon and Ally in my peripheral vision; they were looking at me questioningly.

"What is it?" Carmon asked.

"Shush…"

"Don't 'shush' me, I asked you a question." She snapped.

"Shut up…"

"Why you…you've got some serious manner issues you know."

"I said shut," then I heard it, the whistling sound of something closing in fast, "Get down!" turning quickly, I ran over to the two and pulled them down to the ground. An arrow landed a foot away from where we were; I looked around again searching for the unseen attacker.

"What was that?" Carmon gasped.

"I don't know…now shut up." I got up slowly and pulled the arrow out of the ground, it looked like a regular arrow to me, and then something caught my eye. It was a small engraving near the tip of a snake; it was coiling around the base of the metal point.

"Oh, I'm sorry, we didn't see you standing there." A voice called from the trees, I looked up and around but didn't see anybody, but I could definitely feel them watching and it was aggravating knowing that they had the advantage of not being seen.

"Allow us to introduce ourselves." Two people in identical outfits jumped down from the trees, they both had short brown hair and dark eyes that gleamed in the way eyes' of a murderers' would.

"My name is Michael." The man on the right said.

"And my name is John." The other added. I looked them up and down before taking a step back asking,

"What do you want?"

"Simple really," Michael replied, "We heard there was a stranger around these parts with 'potential' and we wanted to see if it was true."

"Do YOU know where we can find this person? If you tell us, you may live to see another day, but if you don't…well…you get the picture." John said smirking.

I started twirling the arrow in my hand around, I had a feeling I knew who they were talking about and I sure as hell knew 'he' wasn't going to go with them…where ever it was they were planing on taking 'him'. Seeing no other way out of the situation at hand, I gripped the arrow tight in my hand and held it up,

"Potential huh? Well, that's a new one…but I'm sorry, I can't help you." Then I threw the arrow at them, it landed right at their feet with a muffled clatter, I wasn't aiming to be impressive but merely to get the point across that I was not someone to mess with. There were many different signs fellow travelers use to identify ourselves as either friendly or not, there were several subsigns we used such as the one I just used. If someone where to shoot an arrow at you and misses, you have two options, one is to take the arrow and hand it back to the shooter, that means that you have seen that it was an accident and expects an apology. Two, you can throw the arrow at the shooter to show that you are upset at the act and will not hesitate to retaliate if said shooter doesn't leave.

It was all very complicated and I really didn't like getting into it all, the two clearly though got the message and glared at me. It would seem that they were probably going to try and kill us now, I really wasn't to upset about that fact, I was in a pretty irritable mood and a good fight could be a good stress reliever. Sure enough, they made the first move, the one named John advanced taking out a knife, all the while Michael climbed back into the trees.

"You should learn some manners, allow me to teach you a few." He said, it was then that I realized that what I was looking at was merely an afterimage and that John was now holding his knife right under my neck. I laughed lightly and said,

"Well, aren't you special…guess I'll have to be careful." With this said, I pulled the same move I did on Carmon…with a few modifications. I took a step back, anticipating he'd be less likely to slip up like Carmon had, and spun around so I was face to face with him.

"What the…"

"Allow me to teach you a thing or two as well…" I smirked, dropping down slightly. Throwing all my weight into it, I tackled him causing the both of us to fall to the ground. Pinning his arms down with my knees and pressing my forearm into his throat just below his chin. "You've got some nerve attacking us like that…why is this person so important?"

"None of your damn business."

"Wait…who do you work for?" I asked. John smirked, I didn't like the way he was acting, and it was too calm, he replied,

"New Genesis of course…"

That's when another arrow shot out of the trees and narrowly missed my head, I rolled out of the way having to dodge two more. John jumped up and attacked again, this was not the best situation, having to fight two enemies, one I wasn't able to see and the other that was fast. John took out a second knife and threw it at me, it was a good thing I saw it coming because I quickly reached out and caught it. Reflexes that could rival a cat, probably one of my more useful traits, I looked up just as an arrow shot out of the trees again.

Once again I could thank my quick reflexes, with the knife I was able to deflect it, but in doing so I didn't see John come at me from the side. I side stepped but wasn't able to completely avoid his attack, the knife just grazed my shoulder.

"Damn…" I jumped back, just then something flew past my head but it was sent sailing towards my attackers, "What the…" I turned and saw that Carmon was standing a foot away holding several stones in her hand.

"Oh, does somebody else wish to join our little fight?" John smirked, he tossed his knife up in the air then caught it then threw it at Carmon. I reached out quickly and caught the blade just inches away from her face, I twirled it around in my fingers before glaring and snapping,

"Don't do that again!"

"Hey! I was just trying to help." She snapped back.

"Well don't! I can't be saving your sorry ass every five seconds!"

"Then don't!"

I was about to retort but was interrupted by an arrow whizzing by my head again, getting fed up with these arrows, I rounded and ran straight at the tree Michael was in. I managed to build up enough momentum to bound right up the tree side, I lost it though about half way up and had to grab one of the branches, and dropping the two knives I'd acquired, so I wouldn't fall. Glancing up I saw Michael standing on a branch several feet up, he had a crossbow in one hand and a quiver of small arrows at his side, he was smirking. I suddenly realized I was in a very bad position, it made me a sitting duck and now we both knew it. He loaded the crossbow and held it up, I quickly let go dropping down to a lower branch, the arrow buzzed right past me again just barely missing.

"Well! You certainly are a hard target! Tell me, where did you learn to climb trees that way?" Michael smirked, "And your reflexes, inhumanly fast no?"

"Shut up and come down here and fight me like a man!" I shouted back, "What's the matter! To scared to fight me hand to hand!"

"No, just smart." He retorted flatly.

"Fine, I'll just have to come up there and beat the crap out of you!" I leaped onto the next branch started climbing till I reached him.

"Impressive, too bad you're to riley or else we would have considered honoring you with an invitation to join New Genesis." Michael taunted.

"Don't flatter yourself!" I jumped at him and threw a lightning fast round house kick at his head. He dodged and loaded his crossbow again, he raised it to fire but I moved faster and was now standing just behind him, he turned to try and fire again but I moved again remaining behind him.

"Grr…hold still!" he snapped trying to get a clear shot, he finally got fed up with trying to keep up and aimed his crossbow at Ally, "Fine, if you won't sit still, I'll aim at an easier target."

Drawing my pocketknife and flipping out the blade I tackled Michael stabbing him in the back, he lied still in the branches, blood trickling from his mouth. I stood up quickly and examined my now blood-stained pocketknife and hands; I grimaced and tried to wipe it off on my pants. I then looked down to see that John had abandoned attacking Carmon and Ally and was now glaring up at me, I was just about to jump down when suddenly he vanished. John had moved fast again and was now up in the tree with me, he was standing just a foot behind me and about to attack.

Just below, Carmon was pulling on a vine, she had noticed it was attached to several tree branches and if it was pulled a certain way the branches would come loose. When she did this, they sure did come loose because several branches suddenly lurched forward knocking John out of the tree. That would have been a good thing had it not been for the fact that the branches didn't stop there, they kept going and slammed into me knocking the wind out of me and me out of the tree.

John had ran off just as I landed with a rather painful thud, I lied there in the dirt on my back wincing and cursing, that had really hurt. Carmon had gasped and covered her face quickly; she then hesitantly approached me saying,

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry…I didn't think it would hit you and…" she stopped as I slowly sat up, then finally standing up, very slowly and very painfully. I brushed myself off then turned my head slightly and glared at her.

"I'm really, really sorry." She continued. I don't think it was possible for me to even conceive the thought of being able to handle any more of this. It must have been my severely wounded pride and irritation that caused me to draw my pocket knife again, Carmons' eyes went wide as she backed up quickly saying,

"Hey, wait…what are you going to do?"

I stormed over and backed her into a tree and grabbing hold of her ponytail, then holding it tightly in my hand I took the pocketknife and cut it off. I backed up and held out the ponytail saying,

"If you are going to travel with me and insist on constantly getting yourself in danger requiring my saving you, you'll have to do what I tell you! And I told you not to help me!" I then threw the ponytail on the ground and turned to leave, little Ally stepped forward and glared up at me saying,

"Hey! She said she was sorry!" I frowned, "That means you have to do the same thing! For being so mean!"

Due mostly to the fact that I was already in a very foul mood, I didn't hesitate to give the little girl a hair cut as well. We continued walking, my being irritated and silent and them being in stunned irritation. I'd pause every so often and ask if they said anything, it was more or less me venting again, that incident really irked me for some reason. It was either what those two New Genesis characters had said or how it ended, perhaps it was a bit of both, but both Carmon and Ally would just shake their head no, they hadn't said anything.

-To Be Continued-

* * *

Yes! I finished! I stayed up extra late (3:15 a.m.) to finish this chapter and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. (Snickers) I don't think our dear Edu-kun would have the guts to do what he did ta Winry…oh no…she has a wrench, fear the wrench. But yeah, review! For I have completely lost it and now must go and sleep or else I'll be all funky today (hee, hee, that sounds funny) and I won't be able to stare blankly into the library computer screen right and I'll get a nasty headache and then I won't be able to enjoy going to Bridge Fest. (That's a yearly thing my town does, I guess it's celebrating the building of our lift bridge or something). 


	6. Chapter Five

This chapter is gonna be a little different from the last few so I hope ya all enjoy eh!

* * *

**Chapter Five: Her Thoughts  
**

Carmons' POV

I don't think I've ever met anybody more enigmatic then Edward, he's not the nicest person I've ever met, but to me, it seems like he's hiding something. I'm not one hundred percent sure. Then there's his presence, I know I've never seen or met him before and yet there's this ever present sense of security.

Just the other day I found him entertaining Ally, he even taught her how to climb a tree with exceptional ease. This had taken me by surprise since he'd always seemed to dislike having her around, but at that moment, it was almost as if they were ment to find each other. Not in the 'relationship' sort of way, but more so to be there for each other. Ally had lost her whole family to New Genesis; the only reason why she survived was all thanks to her father who had sent her off to buy some milk.

"He's so irritating…" I got up from my spot on the ground and stretched, Ally was playing with the small stuffed dog Edward had been carrying with him, Edward himself was nowhere to be seen.

"Carmen, Ed told me to tell you he'll be back in an hour," Ally said looking up, "Look what he gave me to play with!" she held out the dog and laughed.

"Ed? He lets you call him that?"

"Yeah…he said it was ok," Ally sighed as she flopped the dogs ears back and forth, "I wonder what I should name him?"

"Ally, do you know where he went?" I asked.

"Yes, he went over there." Ally replied pointing off into the trees.

"Do you think you'll be ok if I go look for him?"

"He won't like that, he said he wanted to be alone." Ally said looking up again, "Carmen, he's not that bad really, just…sad…that's all."

I knew Ally had a way to see past people's dispositions and see their 'true' selves, it was a kind of gift she had.

"Is that so?" I sat down next to her; "Did he tell you this?"

"No, but I could tell, nobody should look as sad and distant as he does. That's what gave him away."

"Really? Tell me Ally, what do you think he's really like?"

"Well," Ally tilted her head and held out the toy dog, "his temper is the same, but he cares more then he lets on and hides his own pain and suffering so others won't worry about him."

"Huh…" I stood up again, "Well, if he's going to be that way, I'm going to look for him."

"But…"

"I know he probably won't like it, but I don't care, I have to make sure he's not ditching us." With that said, I started in the direction Ally had pointed. I got about five steps before Ally came up behind me and grabbed the back of my shirt and said,

"I'm coming too…"

"Ok…"

--

We'd been walking for a good twenty minutes before we came to a small creek, Ally ran down and splashed her feet in the water. I followed closely behind and paused, I had one of those feelings people have when they know there's something wrong but can't figure out what it is. I crouched down near the edge of the creek and placed my hands in the cool water, it was a warm day after all and I wanted to wash my face and cool off.

Just as I was bringing my hands up I froze, there was an odd tinge to the water, I stood up quickly letting the water in my hands fall back into the creek, that's when I saw it,

"Ally, get out of the water."

"Huh? What is it?"

"Come here, quickly!" I quickly gestured to here to get over here fast; she did so and continued to ask what the matter was.

"There's blood in the water, you shouldn't play in it." I said as calmly as I could but one question started to bubble to the surface of my mind, who's blood was that? "Ally, wait right here, I'm going to check up the creek."

"Ok." She said simply. I started through the brush leaving Ally just for a moment; I got a good eleven to twelve yards away when I noticed the red in the water becoming more distinct. That could only mean that whatever, or whoever, was bleeding was getting closer, I pulled back some brush and quickly stepped back. There was a seriously mutilated deer lying on the bank of the creek bleeding everywhere,

"Uh geez…" I gave it a reluctant closer look, "What did this?" something snapped just behind me and I nearly jumped out of my own skin. Edward stepped out of the brushes with an irritatedly questioning look on his face,

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"I came looking for you, making sure you didn't run off on us." I replied.

"I couldn't even if I wanted to, I hate the fact that I have to drag the two of you along but I also hate the fact that Ally would have to stay with you if I left…"

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean!"

"Never mind, I want you to go." He said.

"Do you know what did this?" I asked pointing to the nearly unidentifiable animal on the ground; Edward gave it a half glance before answering,

"I did…"

"What!"

"You followed me for another reason did you? You wanted to know more about me, to say 'get to know me'." Edward answered, "All right, you want to know me fine…"

"So wait…you did this? Why?" I asked, I knew he was short tempered and moody but to utterly destroy something like that deer, it just didn't seem…right.

"Because…I wanted too…normally I wouldn't…but I wanted too." He replied simply, "You remember how the sand from the pit had gotten on me and I was having trouble getting it off?"

"Yeah…"

"That was because I couldn't tell what was skin and what was sand, the two had sort of blended together, like a chameleon. Then there was the case with my tree climbing ability, honestly, have you ever seen a live human being climb a tree as well as I can? Kind of like say…a cat or a monkey even. My agility is hardly matched, and my sense of smell, hearing, and seeing is unrivaled."

"What are you saying? That you're just a bunch of animals?"

He sighed and shook his head, I obviously didn't get it, at least he thought so. Ed then looked up,

"You know what happens when someone is exposed to a large amount of radiation right?"

"I've read books, they say the persons' body starts to swell up and then their insides start to liquefy and eventually they die."

"That was the first time someone was 'reportedly' exposed to it in large amounts. That's because they covered up the first time it happened."

"What?"

"Seeing as you're acting slow and stupid, I'm going to have to tell you the story aren't I?" Ed glared looking irritated.

"You don't have to be rude, but yes, I'd like to hear it."

"First, where's Ally?"

"She's over there, why?"

"Never mind." Ed waved off, he then sat down and gestured that I do the same, he said that the deer would mask our presence, I didn't really get that. He then went into telling me about himself; it was a long story and very disturbing in parts, almost unbelievable. He finally got to the part where he arrived in the U.S. and was assigned to work on the development of the atomic bomb, he said that after he and his brother searched for it in hopes of destroying it, he eventually aided in its' creation.

But it was during the first lab test that caused him to lose everything, he said that he was asked to record everything that happened during the test. The test went well but, he got sick and had to miss a lot of his work, eventually the military said that he was a casualty and he was thrown in the quarantine cell.

"How could they do that! That's just wrong!"

"Shush!" Ed snapped, "I'm not done yet. Since I was all ready starting to feel the affects of the radiation poison, something very strange happened, it all stopped. I couldn't explain it, at the time I didn't care. It wasn't until after I'd escaped from that hellish pit that I realized that there were quarantine cells next to mine, that housed animals."

"Animals…they where probably used in tests and stuff."

"Yes, but because of that…that…" Ed stopped, he had a sudden lost look on his face as his hands dropped to his side and he sighed, "It was…them…that's the only possible explanation."

"What?"

"Energy is never created or destroyed…it can only be redirected…because humans have a smaller version of the Gate inside them…and if you have a skilled alchemist who knows the secret to opening that Gate." Ed paused, "When those animals died, their 'souls' or 'energy' or whatever you want to call it, went through the Gate. But since animals can't use alchemy…it went through the only Gate close enough…me." He started rubbing his palms into his forehead in frustration. He then held out his arm,

"I killed it…because I don't want to die yet."

I glanced down at his arm, at first I wasn't sure what it was exactly he was trying to show me but then I saw it. There was a very ugly looking wound; it looked kind of like a chemical burn and it was bleeding pretty badly.

"Oh my god! You have to get that fixed up or it'll get infected!"

"Don't…it'll be fine…" Ed pulled his arm away and got up, "I can't believe you left Ally alone, honestly." He started back in the direction I had come. I got up and followed him to the best of my ability because he'd somehow managed to get way ahead of me. I was still having trouble seeing him do such a thing to a living creature but…if it ment that he'd live longer then it was explainable, sort of.

"CARMAN!"

"That…was Ed." I snapped out of my thoughts and started running, when I found him he was standing in the spot where I'd left Ally, she was gone, "What happened?"

"Damn," Ed knelt down and picked up the toy dog, there was a note attached to it that read,

'To Whom It May Concern,

We've taken the girl, if you want her back show up at the border of New Genesis territory. There you will be escorted to our humble abode and we'll discuss a trade off.'

Edward turned and glared at me, it was a very cold glare and it gave me a very sinking feeling.

"You shouldn't have left her alone."

-To Be Continued-

* * *

CLIFFIE! WHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Ehem…right…yes…I just had this wicked idea and man is it gonna be an 'OMG!' thing, at least that's what I'm shootin' for. It should pop up in the next chapter…yes…heh, heh, heh.


	7. Chapter Six

Ah, so people are wondering what the deal is with the toy dog, well…to be perfectly honest…I really didn't have a reason for it. Though, now that I think about it…I guess it's a sort of representation of who and what he used ta be, a dog of the military. But, awh, yeah, Ally does kinda remind me of Nina, gosh…hadn't really looked at her that way…had something in mind but that's interesting. And as for the killing animals ta live thing…yeah that just popped into my head at the last moment, just one o' them things that shows up unannounced. And by golly, I was rereading the story and realized that in the last chapter I spelled 'Carmon' 'Carmen', it's not too big a deal, I just gotta watch out for that next time.

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**Chapter Six: Meeting **

It took four days and a night to reach the border of New Genesis territory; I personally wasn't too familiar with the area so knowing what to expect was not high on the list. The very plants seemed darker and more sinister looking, more so then usual, there were no animal sounds or the sound of insects buzzing or humming, it was silent and unnerving. Pausing, I looked around slowly allowing my eyes to adjust to the environment and to wait for Carmon to catch up. When she did though she asked,

"Is this the place?"

"Shush…"

"I said…I was sorry…"

"I heard you the first twenty times," I turned and glared at her, "But I have no intention of accepting it until I'm good and ready to."

"Why?" she asked, "I get it all right, I messed up, I shouldn't have left Ally alone and I'm paying for it…by having to put up with you!"

"That was your choice, not mine!" I snapped.

"Ally is my responsibility and it's my right to get her back!" Carmon snapped back, "So tell me, Edward, what is your reason for going after Ally? What is your reason for caring? You're the one who wanted to be left alone and seems to care only for yourself!"

I didn't answer, instead I took a deep breath and turned around, I wasn't sure why I was doing this and I sure as hell wasn't going to tell her that. It had started only a week ago, after spending some time with the little girl I started to sense this air around her, something about Ally that reminded me of…

"I know you're there, come out or I'll come after you."

"What?" Carmon raised a questioning eyebrow; I waved her off and continued,

"Come out now!"

"All right, All right!" a figure dropped down from the shadowy tree branches and landed just behind me, "So, I take it you've come for the little girl?"

"You could say that." I replied not turning around, Carmon though had taken a step forward and demanded,

"What have you done with her?"

"Oh ho, brought a friend along have you?" the figure sneered, "I guess we'll just have to take the both of you."

"What?" this time I turned around, though when I did what I saw coming at me took me completely off guard. A rather large dog like creature jumped at me and knocked me to the ground, its' claws had started digging into my shoulders as it bared its' fangs and growled.

Carmon's POV

Several men appeared out of the shadows and grabbed me by the shoulders, they started dragging me away but I freed myself easily and tried to help Edward. The man who'd first appeared grabbed my wrist and twisted my arm behind my back saying,

"That's not a smart idea, we wouldn't want something to happen to you."

"What are you talking about?" I looked up just in time to see Edward throw the creature off and jump to his feet, he looked very angry, but this angry was one I'd never seen before. The look in his eye wasn't human at all, that's when everything suddenly went dark and hazy, the last thing I remember seeing before the world went dark made my heart stop.

When I came too I found myself blindfolded and my hands were tied behind my back, my ankles were tied together as well. I could feel there was something moving next to me but I wasn't sure what it was,

"Hello?" No response, "Is somebody there?" still no response, sitting very still I waited for something to happen. I could hear footsteps in the distance but they seemed to be going in the opposite direction, where was I anyway?

Something brushed against my leg, I pulled away but it moved closer the minute I moved away. A strange smell started lingering, it as familiar but foreign at the same time, the…whatever it was…brushed against my leg again.

"Is somebody there?" I asked again, this time someone answered.

"W…w…win…"

"Hello? Who's there?" The voice sounded familiar but it sounded strained, "Edward?" something touched my face this time, I nearly jumped out of my skin but quickly realized that it was a hand. It started untying the blindfold carefully, as they were doing this though I noticed that they were wet, when the blindfold fell into my lap I saw that I was lying in a dark room.

Looking around, I didn't see anyone, who'd untied my blindfold? Then whoever it was that untied my blindfold started working on the rope tying my hands behind me, since I was lying on my side I couldn't really see who it was.

"Who's there?" I demanded in as demanding voice I could muster under the circumstances. They paused for a brief moment then continued working at the rope, they apparently decided not to talk, I tried turning over so I could see who it was but they quickly moved away. My hands were untied, I quickly moved them up to my face to try and rub away the strange wet feeling the persons' hands had left when they undid my blindfold. When I looked at my hands again they had small red splotches all over them,

"Oh my god…" I looked up at the figure now sitting in a shadowed corner, "You're bleeding."

They didn't say anything; all they really did was inch closer to the wall furthest away from me. I may have scared them, that wasn't intentional of course, so I asked,

"Have…you seen a little girl? She's about nine years old and, has lon…short goldbrown hair and dark bluebrown eyes."

This seemed to get the figures attention, they started to inch towards me, slowly at first until they were crouched in front of me and I was able to see their face. I wasn't sure if I was seeing things correctly or if the darkness was distorting things but, my eyes grew very wide as they asked in a slow, hushed, almost raspy voice,

"Y…you're…not talking…about…Ally…are you?"

--

Edwards' POV (again)

I don't remember when I blacked out but the last thing I do remember was the feeling of my mind quickly losing all sense of time, place and self. It left me feeling very drained, very sore, and above all very depressed, something deep inside was telling me I did something, something terrible. At that moment though, as I sat in a rare moment of self-pity, I realized my hands had been chained up and I was sitting in what appeared to be a dungeon cell.

A rat slowly crawled along the side of the floor and wall; it came in real close and seemed to sniff around for food or the possibility that I'd died. I quickly answered its' 'question' by lashing out and grabbing it in both hands. It fought madly, biting and scratching at my hand, trying to escape my grasp but I didn't let go or even flinch, I merely eyed the rodent for a brief moment then tightened my grip,

"I hold your life in my hand…I could kill you right now and prolong my own life…" I said simply, the rat continued to thrash around, "I know you can understand me…do you want to die or will you do something for me in exchange for your life?"

This time the rodent stopped thrashing, it looked at me, its' beady black eyes saying that it would do whatever it was I wanted. I smirked and told it to go find Ally, I gave a very detailed description of her so it would be near impossible to mistake her for anyone else. I let the rat go and it scurried off to perform its' life saving task, I though leaned back against the wall and glanced down at my hands. They were severely scratched and bitten up, my palms were bleeding profusely so I used my shirt to wrap them up. It didn't hurt but I didn't like the fact that I was bleeding, I then took a moment to look at the metal cuffs around my wrists.

I pulled hard on the chain but it was stuck solid in the wall, sighing, I rested my arms on my knees and my head against the wall, closing my eyes for a moment. This cell…it was just like…

A door on the far left suddenly flung open, a figure was standing in front of the open door looking down at me, they looked strangely familiar but faces and names just weren't clicking at the moment. They walked into the room and smirked, that smirk…it was so familiar.

"Well, well, well…what do we have here?" they jeered, "I see you're as predictable as any other bleeding heart. You've come to get back the little girl haven't you?"

"Damn right…" I hissed.

"Such language…what are you…seventeen? Eighteen? You really shouldn't use such words." the man jeered again.

"Twenty-three assho…" my retort was rudely interrupted by something suddenly connecting with my face and causing me to hit the floor without realizing what it was exactly that attacked me. At least…only for a second…I looked back up at the man standing in front of me, he was smirking again, memories…images…I knew that smirk. That smirk haunted my nightmares on many occasions, but something was different about it.

"What did I tell you about that language?" He said in a very venomous tone.

"I've come for the girl." I said slowly.

"Oh my, which one do you mean? I believe I posses both your traveling companions and I'm not sure which one it is you're here for."

"Don't toy with me! Both!" I snapped.

"Right, right…" the man sneered, "I'll free the both of them under one condition."

"What do you want?"

The mans' smirk grew, both in size and menace, he reached down and grabbed me by the throat and said,

"You…"

-To Be Continued-

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Hee, once again I use Carmons' point of view, I have fun with her…plus it gives a small recess from always listening to Edward (rolls eyes)

Ed: Hey!

Me: You know I love you Edward.

Ed: No you don't! You're abusive! And lazy!

Me: I'm not lazy (or abusive) I'm just following my artistic vision.

Ed: ABUSIVE! (Kicking and screaming while being stuffed into a closet)

No, not a shonen ai story! Nope! No! Not this one! Just wanted ta make that clear…ok…anywhozles, I bet nobody can guess who the two are that Carmon and Edward met. Well, if you want to know you'll just have ta stay tuned (cheesy commercial wink).


	8. Chapter Seven

I'm in a chapter writing mood! Booyaka! Right, here ya go! Oh…boy…I'm just not getting Carmons' name right…OK, it's C.A.R.M.O.N. got it…right…(drills into brain).

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Chapter Seven: Into the Darkness Again

--

"Wait, you've seen her?" I couldn't place it, the young man crouching there in front of me almost reminded me of Edward. Though, there were distinct characteristics that clearly said he wasn't. For instance, he couldn't be more then nineteen or twenty years old, his hair was closer to a light brown then gold and his eyes were a dark bluish color border line brown, they also had more life in them. Though they did look on the down side at the moment.

"No…" he answered sadly, "but…I haven't seen her in a long time."

"Who are you? For some reason, it feels as if I know you." I asked, curiosity getting the better of me. He looked up at me for a moment, the look he had on his face was sad, he then answered,

"I could say the same about you," he scratched the back of his head, allowing his fingers to work through his long hair, "My name is…Alphonse…what's…your name?"

"Carmon," I answered, "Where are you from Alphonse?"

"My brother and I were… 'liberated'…from Nazi Germany during World War II." Alphonse said, he was now doodling strange looking circles on the sandy floor. I on the other hand was trying to digest the sudden possibility of who this young man was, why did he remind me so much of Edward? Apart from his seemingly kind disposition, there's just this presence around him that…my eyes narrowed in a sympathetic manner.

"Why don't you tell me about your brother." I said, this was a slightly double-sided question, one side being I wanted to try and get to know him and the second side being I wanted to confirm my suspicion.

"Well…" Al scribbled out the doodle, "I haven't seen him in a long time, he was assigned by the U.S. government to work on a project, he wasn't allowed to tell me what it was though."

"Really…why did they ask him?"

"Because, he was studying rockets." Al said simply.

"Rockets! How old is your brother?"

"Well, from his last letter he was nineteen…now…he should be at least twenty-three," Al tilted his head to the side, "If he's still alive…that is."

"And how old are you!"

"Twenty-two."

I tried to pat him on the back but he moved away, using his arms to push mine aside, he muttered,

"Please…don't touch me. It's nothing personal, I just…don't like being touched."

"Sorry," I drew my hand away, "So, um…what was your brother like? I mean, his personality."

Alphonse sighed and smiled slightly, it was a look that complimented him well, I thought it made him look like a child, and then another thing hit me…his smile…

"His indomitable spirit is unmatched, he hated to see other people suffer, what he hated even more was seeing people suffer because of him." Alphonse flopped down in the dust and inclined back on his hands, "But he also had his quirks, like, he didn't like people calling him short or small. You see, he was never really that tall and he was quite sensitive about it, he also had a short temper and a short attention span. Yes…he'd have his moments all right." He started talking about how his brother loved eating and sparring. I sat listening intently, there was just no possible way he was talking about Edward, the person he was talking about was kind and sweet and gentle. Edward was distant, untrusting and bitter.

"Alphonse…"

"Yes?"

"I know these are two different questions but…they've been nagging at the back of my mind for some time now."

"All right…"

"How do you know Ally and…what was your brothers' name?" As much as evidence proved it couldn't possibly be Edward, there was something deep down that wanted it to be. I don't know why, but, I want there to be a way to bring the possibly old Edward back…I wanted him to smile.

Alphonse eyed me for a moment, I was deep in thought and half waiting for him to answer, he then sighed and fiddled with the hem of his shirt saying,

"My brothers' name was…is…Edward," he looked at me funny, "Why do you ask that?"

"What about Ally?" I asked trying to quickly change the subject. Al gave me a suspicious glance before continuing.

"I'll be honest…I never expected something like that to happen, I was only seventeen after all and I felt it happened much too fast." he started.

--

Edwards' POV 

"What?"

"You heard me…in exchange for their freedom, you have to stay here." The mans' smirk had become unnaturally wide.

"Why?"

"I don't think that should matter," he answered simply, "You came here to get the them back, and the only way to do that is to take their place…it shouldn't really matter why if it means they can go free."

He was cleaver; he seems to know how I think and how I feel about things like this, where the hell have I seen that smirk before?

"Well?"

"Fine…"

"Then it's done!" the man waved his hand and two men left the room, we were left alone which gave me some time to try and place who it was I was talking too. He on the other hand had a different plan to pass the time. He sent his foot right into my stomach, I gasped as the wind was knocked out of me, he crouched down in front of me and grabbed my throat forcing me to look at him, still smirking he said,

"You don't like the dark…do you? Being locked up in the darkness…it does things to the mind…"

"Like I'd know…" I scoffed.

"Oh…I think you do…and I'm going to enjoy watching what happens to you as your already feeble mind as you slowly deteriorate in the shadows."

"What!" the next thing I know the man had kicked me in the stomach again, knocking what little air I'd managed to regain out again, then kicking me in the head, again, knocking me out cold.

When I came too, I'd been moved to a different cell, in this one my hands were literally chained to the wall so that they hung just above my head. I was sitting against the far wall, but, I couldn't tell how close I was too the door, it was pitch black. My heart started to race and my breathing picked up, I shook my head and shut my eyes, this wasn't happening. I tried pulling my arms down but they were bound real tight and weren't coming down, a sick churning feeling had started welling up in my gut as I felt the corners of my eyes start burning from encroaching tears.

"No…. nononono…this isn't possible…how…how does he know?"

"How do I know about your greatest fear you ask?" the mans voice came from nowhere, "Because! I've wanted to see you suffer…and finally break at the mercy of your worst fear…hahahahaha!"

"No…let me out! Let me out! Let me out! Let me out, damnit!"

"Awh…what's the matter? Afraid of the dark? Here, let me shed some light on the situation for you," the man laughed scornfully, though they still burned, my eyes went wide as the mans voice became an almost crackle. It was a very distinct voice, smug, sinister, slightly but not by a lot feminine and completely and totally full of loathing for all things, "Your little girl friends are not the only ones I have that you care about, I believe you know him as…little brother…"

"What?"

"Heh, heh, heh…I'll be seeing you in a few days…Elric…" his voice disappeared leaving me feeling much, much, MUCH worse then before. The dark was invading and I hated it.

"Let me out…now!"

--

Carmons' POV 

"Aaargh!"

"What the heck was that?" Al looked around startled, he'd never heard a sound quite like that before, I also looked around, I'd never heard a sound like that either. I never wanted to hear that sound again either, it was horrible and it made my insides churn.

"I don't know, I've never heard that sound before."

"Hmm…" Alphonse slowly stood up, this was the first time he's done this so I was able to see how tall he was. Well, he couldn't be more then 5'8 maybe 5'9", about average height for someone his age; he was though at least an inch taller then Edward that was very, VERY clear now.

"So, you knew Ally when she was a baby?"

"Of course…why wouldn't I?" he said moving towards the door.

"Well…you haven't actually specified HOW you know her."

He sighed and answered,

"I know her because…she's my daughter."

-To Be Continued-

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Agent000, if you're reading this then you are allowed to call it short! Cause yes…it is…I'm workin' up to the big end thingy! It's gonna be fun! Yeah! So, has anyone figured out who the mystery man is yet? No? That's ok, cause if you haven't he's identity will be reveled in the next chapter (evil laughter). Till then, leave offerings of reviews and sour straws (no, I do not accept child sacrifices…though I am flattered)…oh yeah…it's one o' dem mornings (sighs).


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